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10 Things You Should Know About Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan

Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1888-1975) was an Indian philosopher, statesman, and articulate interpreter of Hindu tradition to the West. Born into Radhakrishnan was born near Madras into a Brahmin family of orthodox Hindu persuasion near Madras, India, he went on to become the President of India from 1962 to 1967. On his birthday today, here are some interesting things you should know about the best teacher of India:

1. Dr. S Radhakrishnan was an Indian philosopher who was the first Vice President (1952-1962) and the second President of India (1962-1967)

2. Dr. Radhakrishnan was so popular back in the day that when he was leaving Mysore University to join as a professor in the University of Calcutta, he was taken all the way from Mysore University to the Railway Station in a flower decked carriage that was pulled by his students

3. He held the position of Vice Chancellor at Andhra University (1931-1936) and Benaras Hindu University (1939-
1948)

4. Dr. Radhakrishnan placed Indian Philosophy on the World map. He showed that western philosophers, despite all their claims to objectivity, were biased by theological influences from their wider culture

5. When Radhakrishnan had to preside over the Rajya Sabha sessions in the Parliament as the Vice President, he would intervene with slokas from the Sanskrit classics or quotations from the Bible to calm the heated atmosphere.
Nehru commented later saying, “By the way in which Radhakrishnan conducted the proceedings of the Rajya Sabha, he had made the meetings of the House look like family gatherings!”

6. He was as appointed a Knight Bachelor in 1931, which was a part of the British Honors system

7. He was elected as the Fellow of the British Academy in 1938

8. Radhakrishnan was also awarded the prestigious Bharat Ratna in 1954

9. He was also President of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) from 1952-54

10. When Radhakrishnan died on April 17, 1975 in Madras, the Indian Government ordered a week-long state of mourning